


after the battle, it's time we go home

by verboseDescription



Category: Doom Patrol (TV)
Genre: Coping, Cyborg Patrol, Healing, also the rest of the doom patrol is there too i guess, stop!!! giving vic trying trauma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-04
Updated: 2019-05-04
Packaged: 2020-02-18 13:11:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,836
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18700279
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/verboseDescription/pseuds/verboseDescription
Summary: Vic reinstalls Grid. It tells him that what happened to his dad isn't his fault. He really wants to believe that.





	after the battle, it's time we go home

Vic’s dad is fine. Or, not fine, because his only son had _beat him unconscious_ but he’s.

He’s not dead. And that’s a start.

It’s Larry’s idea to bring him to Star Labs, and it’s Jane’s idea not to tell them anything.

“You were captured, shit went down, and we’re not going to talk about it,” she says. “That’s all they need to know.”

Star Labs has a doctor on staff, anyways. All they need to know is that it was blunt trauma and that he hasn’t had any other injuries. It doesn’t take them long to inform Vic that his dad’s not in any serious danger. They tell him this repeatedly, each time more emphatic than the last. Then they tell him they’re not sure when he’ll wake up. It could be a day. A night. But it could be a month, a year. Maybe longer.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Cliff asks awkwardly. “I mean, you don’t have to, no pressure, but…”

Vic stares at Grid’s chip in his hand. He’d taken it once the rest of the team had come to get him. Cliff had offered to carry Dad, and Vic just grabbed the chip from his hand and moved out of the way. Rita had rubbed his shoulder the whole ride back. It was a strangely motherly gesture. He hadn’t expected than from her.

“Grid was perfect,” Vic says. “I was… I was wrong.”

Rita pats his shoulder again.

“But didn’t you say it wasn’t listening to you?” Jane asks.

“Mr. Nobody.”

“Shit.”

“Yeah.”

“The whole time?”

“Think so,” Vic says. He wasn’t sure on the details, but if Nobody could hack his visuals, there was no reason he couldn’t get into his weapons. And that was… Shit, that _sucked._ That was too much control over him. If he didn’t want his _dad_ to be monitoring his system, then he sure as hell didn’t want Nobody messing around with it.

“If you need anything,” Rita says softly. “Just let us know.”

“I think,” Vic says. “I think I just want to go home.”

To his surprise, no one argues. The rest of the team just shuffles softly around him until Rita says, “If that’s what you want.”

 

 

It’s not actually a hard decision to bring Grid back online. If Mr. Nobody hadn’t shown up, Vic knows he wouldn’t have even thought about it, but now that he knows that it was all Nobody trying to “fuck his brain,” it just seems like such an obvious response.

He’s stronger with Grid, so Grid goes back online.

And after all, Grid was made by his… Grid was made to help him. To heal him.

Well, Vic feels pretty broken right now, but he’s not sure any nanites are going to fix that. He’s not sure if Grid has any way of dealing with trauma, but Vic’s feeling so damn tired he might just ask.

 

Cyborg says, I don’t know how to deal with this.

And Grid says: Breathe. Inhale. Exhale. Remember it is not your fault for being taken advantage of. Remember that you will survive. Remember that he will, too.

 

The team refuses to leave him. Larry says he’s in no shape to be alone with his thoughts and Cliff yells “Sleepover!” so they all go back to Vic’s home. Vic gives them a tour. There’s some trophies on the wall that he had almost forgotten about. His mom had put them on display, but Dad had tacked up some news articles near them. About Cyborg. Dad was always so proud of Cyborg.

“I can’t believe I let Mr. Nobody do that to me,” Vic says suddenly. “I mean… my own _dad._ I should have trusted him. I should have known he’d never…”

“It shouldn’t be on you to trust him,” Jane says fiercely. “You told us you were always afraid of him. Why the fuck wasn’t he here trying to stop that, huh?”

“I said that?” Vic says.

“Therapy,” Rita reminds him.

“Right.”

Vic’s not sure what to do now. Sleepovers kind of lose their novelty when you’ve already been sharing a house.

“We should order pizza,” Jane says. “Not Domino’s, they’re shit at making gluten-free.”

“Sure,” Vic says. “There’s a place down the block that’s pretty great. You want any toppings?”

 

And Cyborg asks, how do I know that everything will be okay? How can I trust anything now? How do I even know this is real?

And Grid says, look around you. These people are your friends. They are here because they care. They know what happened, and they know they can trust you. Breathe in. Breathe out. Feel the table under your fingers. Hear the hum of the air conditioning turning on. Smell the air freshener your father always sprays too much of. This is all real, and so are you. If your grasp on reality is strained, there is no harm in asking for help. Sometimes, all you need is a second opinion.

 

“You’re telling me you never had a girlfriend?” Cliff teases. “Captain of the football team and there _still_ wasn’t anyone who caught your eye?”

“I had a 4.0 GPA!” Vic protests. “I didn’t have time for dating! You want to know what I did all day as a teen? I went to school, I had practice and then I passed out as soon as I got home and did all my homework at like, 5 AM.”

“Oh man, same here,” Cliff says. “Hey, what about you guys? I bet Rita was like a cheerleader or some shit. Was there cheerleaders in the 40s?”

“Oh, I didn’t go to school,” Rita says casually, eating three pieces of pizza stacked on top of each other.

“That explains so much,” Larry mutters. Rita kicks him. “Hey, do you have a blender?”

“Yeah, it’s in the second cabinet to the right,” Vic says. “Why?”

“I’m hungry,” Larry explains. “I’m going to make a pizza smoothie.”

 _“You can do that?”_ Cliff exclaims.

“I used to do it all the time,” Larry says. “The only way I can eat outside my room is if I stick a straw through the bandages.”

“You should add some of this orange soda,” Rita offers. “Too bad there’s no gin to go along with it.”

“My dad has vodka,” Vic says immediately. He’s suddenly very interested in seeing how this plays out. He’s also fairly certain his dad doesn’t own any straws. “Do you—does that—is it going to taste good?”

Larry pauses his rummaging through Vic’s kitchen and tilts his head.

“Probably not,” he admits. “But I want pizza.”

Larry takes out the blender and shoves a piece of pizza in. Rita passes him soda, which Larry uses to completely drown the pizza.

“Put some celery in it,” Jane says. “You need a vegetable.”

“Jane,” Larry says sincerely. “I’ve eaten army rations before. _Nothing_ can upset my stomach.”

He grabs a piece of celery from Jane’s hand and drops it in the blender, making both Cliff and Jane scream.

“I think this alone qualifies you for the Justice League,” Vic tells him. Larry gives him a thumbs up and starts the blender.

 

Cyborg asks, how am I supposed to fight someone who can do this? How can I justify fighting someone who has already hurt me so much?

And Grid says, don’t. Tactically, it is unwise to fight someone when you are afraid of losing. Your body is human, and so is your mind. You will tense up. You will want to survive. So survive. Your operating system exists for you. Exist for yourself, too.

 

Vic wakes up early and goes for a run only to find himself in Danny the Street.

 _You look sad,_ a banner tells him.

“Yeah,” Vic laughs. “I, uh. Found Mr. Nobody. Turns out, he was in my head the whole time!”

A teddy bear appears near a lamp post with a sign that says, “Free Hugs.” Vic laughs again, a little lighter this time. He picks up the bear.

“Thanks, Danny,” Vic says. “I just feel so _stupid._ It’s like, I should have been able to tell, you know? I’ve had Grid for five years, but I can’t even tell when a supervillain impersonates my own AI.”

 _Mr. Nobody isn’t always easy to spot,_ says chalk writing on the sidewalk. _He always knows the worst things to say. Don’t blame yourself, love._

“I hurt my dad,” Vic says, voice cracking. “Mr. Nobody kept pushing me, telling me that I couldn’t trust him and somehow, he got me to believe it. But I think—I think a part of me was looking for an excuse to believe him. He wasn’t the worst dad, but sometimes it felt like all he wanted from me was data.”

 _It’s okay to not know how to feel,_ the leaves in the wind tell him.

“But he’s my _dad.”_

 _Plenty of people here love their parents,_ a street sign tells him.

 _Plenty of them are afraid of them as well_ , the other side adds.

“He was never… he was cold, sure, but he wasn’t a bad guy _._ I mean, he saved my life!” Vic says. Then, softer, he adds. “And I put him into a coma.”

He’s certain now, that his father had only been trying to look out for his best interests. The problem was, Silas Stone never knew what Vic wanted. He had tried pretty hard to be a good dad, honestly, especially after his mom had died. After the accident, Dad had told him that even though Mom was dead, he wouldn’t leave Vic’s sight. Not even for a moment. At the time, it had been what Vic had wanted to hear.

Vic hugs the teddy bear. He appreciates it. It has a tutu and a sparkly bowtie. Very Danny.

The words on the heart change. Now, they read, “You shouldn’t of had to deal with this.”

Vic blinks back tears. The words are all squished together. It’s not a big heart. Vic still appreciates it.

A news box opens up near him, revealing a greeting card.

“Being a good person shouldn’t lead to trauma,” it says. “He crossed a line, Vic. I’m so sorry.”

Vic folds the card up and puts it in his pocket.

“The thing is,” Vic says. “I don’t know how I’m going to get over this.”

 _Do you have to?_ A banner asks.

“I mean, what else am I going to do?” Vic replies. “If I don’t, who’s going to lead the team? I can’t—I don’t want to even _think_ about Mr. Nobody, Danny. But he still has Niles. And that means we have to find him.”

 _That shouldn’t be all up to you,_ a poster on a lamppost says. It has Cyborg drawn on it, with the rest of the team circling around him, telling him it’s okay to take time off. The drawing of Cliff overs to lead the next mission.

“I feel like I should want revenge,” Vic says. “That I’ve got to be the one to bring this guy down.”

 _Niles isn’t getting any less kidnapped, dear,_ the sign above Peeping Tom’s says. _If it’s really want you want, revenge can wait._

“Who are we getting revenge on?” Maura Lee asks. Vic jolts. He hadn’t realized she was behind him.

“Mr. Nobody,” Vic says. “He uh, played a bunch of mind games with me. I’ve definitely got some new nightmare material from that.”

Maura Lee frowns at him.

“Are you sure you should go after him, then?” she asks. “Sounds pretty tough.”

“You fought those Bureau agents,” Vic reminds her.

“And I waited a long time before I approached them,” Maura Lee says. “We didn’t force an encounter. Danny and I made sure we were ready to face them. The question is, are you?”

Vic’s shoulders slump.

“No,” he says softly. “I’m not.”

“Then don’t go looking for trouble,” Maura Lee tells him. She pokes his nose. “Relax. Find a way to get that stick out of your ass. Do something fun, for once in your life.”

“I have fun,” Vic says, defensively, but the last time he had done anything “just for fun,” was when he was chatting up girls on that hook-up app. So he hadn’t found any, so what? It had been nice to pretend to be a normal guy trying to find a date. Even if all they wanted was Cyborg.

“If you want to _really_ have fun, you could always stay here,” Maura Lee offers. “Always something going on in Danny. And we’re always happy to have someone new.”

“Thanks for the offer,” Vic says. “But I think I just want to go home.”

“You do you,” Maura Lee says. “Just remember we’re here. If you need us to be.”

A piece of paper flutters down from the sky. It’s a chain of paper dolls, but instead of being shapeless people, it’s him. Him and Maura Lee, and a signpost, for Danny. And Larry. All holding hands. All ready to help each other out.

“I won’t forget,” Vic says. “I promise.”

 

Cyborg asks, do you think he’ll forgive me? He saved my life and I almost ended his. What kind of son am I? What kind of _man?_

And Grid says: You are Cyborg. You are exactly who your father wanted you to be. A hero. Someone who does the right thing, despite the consequences. And for that, he would be proud.

 

Vic gets back home to find Rita attempting and failing miserably at making pancakes. Cliff’s very loudly cheering her on, but it just makes her scream. She notices Vic and lets out a long sigh.

“I wanted to do something nice for you,” she tells him, forlorn. “You’re going through so much, I just wanted to make it just a bit easier, but I’m… not much of a cook.”

“It’s cool,” Vic tells her. “I bought bagels. They’re gluten-free. Did my dad have a pancake mix?”

“Oh, _thank goodness_ ,” Rita says, flopping down onto a chair. Vic tosses her a bagel “And, no, but Larry made the batter. He said you had all of the ingredients lying around.”

Vic turns to Larry, who’s sipping a smoothie. Vic both does and doesn’t want to know what’s in it. He thinks he sees some apple in there somewhere?

“I can’t cook,” Larry offers. “I just know the recipe.”

“Ah,” Vic says. “Of course.”

“You doing better?” Jane asks. She snatches a bagel from him and immediately begins slathering it with an unhealthy amount of cream cheese.

“I guess so,” Vic says. “Mostly I’m just wondering about how I’m going to face him. I don’t know if I can really explain myself. He kept on telling me he was going to get me out and then I just…”

Grid beeps at him.

“Would you like to activate Meditation Mode?” Grid asks.

“What?” Vic asks, placing a finger to his metal ear.

“A recent upgrade,” Grid informs him. “Created to ensure that the life of a hero does not permanently harm your psyche. It contains a message.”

Rita tilts her head.

“Are you talking to your robot?” she asks him. “Is everything alright? It’s listening to you?”

“Grid’s fine,” Vic tells her. “Better then fine. I think some new features finally came online. Maybe that means Mr. Nobody’s really gone. Play the message, Grid.”

An image of his father appears in his eyes.

“I know we haven’t been seeing… eye to eye lately,” Dad says. He shifts uncomfortably. “I can be harsh. Maybe too harsh, I admit it. But I want you to know that I only ever wanted the best for you. But now that you’re gone, I realize that I can’t be there to protect you forever. And there’s a chance that if things are getting really difficult, well, you wouldn’t tell me. So, I’ve updated Grid a bit while you were rebooting. It’s a rudimentary program—it’s not generally the kind of thing I’m used to doing. I took most of it from an app, if I’m being honest. But I hope it helps. Whatever you’re feeling, Grid will be there for you to help you through it.”

Dad pauses for a moment.

“I love you, Victor,” he says finally, his tone filled with more emotion than Vic expected. “If anyone can find Niles, it’s you. You’re becoming such a fine young hero. And I’m so proud. So damn proud.”

“End of message,” Grid informs him as Dad disappears from Vic’s sight.

“Victor?” Rita asks. “Are you alright? Do we need to have a chat with your program?”

“No,” Vic says. He wipes his eye. Funny, he hadn’t even realized that he was crying. “No, it’s fine. I’m fine. I just I miss my dad.”

 

 

 

Cyborg asks, what could I have done to be better?

And Grid says, you’re already perfect the way you are. We are all so proud of you. We love you, Cyborg.

We love you, Victor Stone.

**Author's Note:**

> I was just so sad about cyborg I needed to write him in like, the aftermath of it all. When I started the episode, I was kind of like "hey, I wonder if Grid's malfunctioning b/c Vic's been going through a lot of trauma and it doesn't know how to 'fix' that" and then that wasn't the case but i think grid should care about vics trauma  
> anyways, stop horrifically traumatizing your black characters while the white ones get to have emotional journeys and grow as people & etc


End file.
